Electronic notarial archiving and deadline monitoring
Keep the private deeds of your firm with probative value for the entire legal duration, and monitor the deadlines attached to them — withdrawal period, mandate renewal, convention deadline. Each archived act remains accessible with its complete audit trail (identity of signatories, timestamp, document hash), without having to reconstruct the history manually at the time of an audit or dispute.
- Legal framework
- Legal archiving · probative value
- Signature level
- AES eIDAS recommended
- Legal archiving
- 10 years included
Why does certified archival matter for a notary office?
Private deeds from a notary office — fee agreements, succession management mandates, client agreements — must be kept for the applicable limitation period (generally 10 years for civil and commercial deeds) and remain enforceable in case of audit by the Superior Council of Notaries or litigation with a client. Certified archival is not just about storing the signed PDF: it also preserves the complete audit trail — verified identity of the signatory, timestamp, document fingerprint — which proves the reliability of the deed when it is contested. Some deeds also carry their own deadline (mandate withdrawal period, confidentiality commitment duration, convention renewal) that must be trackable without manually reviewing each file.
Why sign electronically?
10 years of archival included
Each private deed is kept with its audit trail for 10 years (standard limitation period), without any additional steps, with possible extension for estate files requiring longer retention.
Complete and exportable audit trail
Signatory identity verified by SMS OTP, RFC 3161 timestamp, SHA-256 document fingerprint. The proof PDF exports in one click for audit by the Superior Council of Notaries or litigation.
Deadline tracking by deed
Withdrawal period, mandate renewal, convention deadline: each deed retains the information needed to find its deadlines without reopening the file from scratch.
Professional confidentiality preserved in archival
TLS 1.3 encryption in transit, AES-256 at rest, strict data isolation by office, 100% EU hosting (IONOS), with no subcontracting outside the EU — including for long-term archived deeds.
4-step procedure
From preparation to legal archiving, in less than 5 minutes.
1. Sign the private deed
The deed is signed in advanced signature (AES) with identity verification by SMS OTP from each client.
2. Automatic certified archival
The finalized deed and its complete audit trail are archived automatically, without additional handling by the office.
3. Track attached deadlines
Find at any time the deadlines specific to the deed (withdrawal period, renewal, commitment duration) directly from its file.
4. Export in case of audit or litigation
The proof PDF and complete audit trail export in one click, for a successor colleague, the Superior Council of Notaries or any court.
Frequently asked questions
- How long must a notary keep private deeds?
- At least 10 years, the standard limitation period applicable to civil and commercial deeds. For deeds related to an estate or patrimony file, longer retention is recommended. Certyneo archives for 10 years included, with extension available.
- What is archiving with probative value?
- It is the preservation of the signed document accompanied by its complete audit trail — verified identity of the signatory, time-stamping, document fingerprint — which makes it possible to demonstrate the reliability of the deed in case of dispute, not just to store it.
- How to track the withdrawal period of a notarial mandate?
- The withdrawal period applicable to certain mandates remains attached to the archived deed, viewable from its file without having to review the history of exchanges with the client.
- What happens if an archived deed is contested by a client?
- The proof PDF and complete audit trail (identity verified by OTP SMS, RFC 3161 time-stamping, SHA-256 hash) are exported in one click, enforceable before all civil and commercial courts and before the Superior Council of Notaries in case of disciplinary proceedings.
- Does electronic archiving respect notarial professional confidentiality?
- Yes — TLS 1.3 encryption in transit, AES-256 at rest, strict data isolation by practice, 100% EU hosting (IONOS) with no outsourcing outside the EU, DPA compliant with GDPR incorporating clauses specific to notarial professional confidentiality.
- Can an archived deed be exported for a successor colleague?
- Yes, each deed and its audit trail remain exportable at any time from its file, for transmission to a colleague in case of practice takeover or client portfolio transfer.
- Does deadline tracking also work for multi-signatory deeds?
- Yes — for a deed involving multiple heirs or co-owners, the deadline remains attached to the deed itself, regardless of the number of signatories.
- Does probative value archiving also concern the electronic authentic deed?
- No — the electronic authentic deed (art. 1369 Civil Code, decree 2005-973) is preserved according to a system specific to the notarial profession, outside the scope of Certyneo. This archiving concerns the private deeds of the practice.
Also read
- Electronic signature for notaries and notarial offices
- Glossary — advanced signature (AES)
- Glossary — eIDAS regulation
- Certyneo pricing
- eIDAS electronic signature solution
- Electronic signature for notaries and notarial firms
- Manage your notarial files online
- Authentic deed vs private agreement for notaries
- Le Plan Métier Notariat : gestion de dossiers pour étude notariale
Archive your notarial deeds with complete peace of mind
Free permanent plan (5 envelopes for 14 days, then 2/month), without credit card. Probative value archiving 10 years included, compliant with notary status and eIDAS.